Kathy Phillips: Clawson Business Person of the Year

This year, local real estate agent and City Council member Kathy Phillips was named Clawson's Business Person of the Year.

The award came as a surprise to Phillips, who said she was truly humbled when the city honored her March 16 at the . She has lived in Clawson for the past 30 years and has been a real estate agent for the past six years, working at Century 21 Town & Country in Royal Oak.

Phillips said she has never had a better year in real estate and hopes that her work ethic has something to do with the recent uptick in business.

She is a woman who truly believes in building relationships and said she likes to relate to her customers on a personal level.

“What you put into it is what you get back out of it,” Phillips said. “It’s about relationships, and in almost every deal I’ve ever done, I’ve gotten to feel like the people are more my friends than just my clients.”

The reason she originally pursued real estate is because of her personal skills, she said. Phillips said someone told her she had a great personality for the business, and she took the advice and ran with it.

Building relationships is not only important in her real estate work; she approaches everything she does in her life with the same attitude. Phillips is a dedicated volunteer for quite a few community projects, which gives her a busy schedule. The city named her Volunteer of the Year two years ago.

“Kathy Phillips is an awesome person," said Beverly Owens,  supervisor.

"She is very caring and thoughtful, and I am talking from a personal and business perspective,” Owens said. “She is definitely a people person, and I feel honored to have worked with her in so many areas.”

Clawson resident and member Brian Sutherland felt the same way. “She genuinely cares about her town and the people in it,” he said.

Currently, Phillips helps out with Rotary Club projects, such as the Clawson Claws & Paws event, and she is co-chair of She also finds her hands constantly in other projects and events within the community.

Phillips is also in her second term on City Council, which she originally joined because she lives by the motto, “If you’re going to complain about something, you better be prepared to help make a change.”

“I’m not a politician, I’m more of an activist,” Phillips said.

In her spare time, Phillips enjoys outdoor activities in the summer, such as gardening and tending to her lawn or sunning by her pool. She also has a passion for graphic design. When she isn’t getting creative with websites or designs, she uses her creative energy to switch the furniture placements in her house.

“I like to switch things around, and that changes my attitude,” she said.

Phillips is a mother of three: Cristina, 13, who attends , and Bob, 28, and Jennifer, 24. Phillips said Cristina has followed in her footsteps and was recently honored at a Junior Optimist award ceremony at Clawson Middle School.

“She’s always been my sidekick to everything,” Phillips said.